Tthree miles north of the SCG, the world’s oldest living Test cricketer sits in his La-Z-Boy armchair and watches the Test. Neil Harvey was once the youngest of Bradman’s Invincibles; now he is 97 and his old cricketing friends are gone. His body is a little worn around the edges, but mentally he is astute.
Harvey was Australia’s darling, the second youngest of six brothers, a dashing southpaw who stalked behind the covers and went skid hunting. During a 15-year Test career, he reached over 6,000 runs at an average of 48, topping his score with 153 in his second Test. He was a regular at the SCG, attending every Test from 1949 until four years ago when, in the words of his son Bruce, he “gave up public appearances” and has very fond memories of the place.
“I really enjoyed it here,” he says on the phone. “Probably the most satisfying moment was not competing against Frank Tyson in 1954. We would have won that match, but no one else could stay with me. [Australia needed 223 to win, no one else made more than 16.] Tyson was as fast as they come, he and Wes Hall were the two fastest bowlers I ever played against. They didn’t let you down.”
The Christmas tree has been put away, but Harvey is surrounded by other sparkling souvenirs from a life well lived: a crystal cabinet containing napkin rings by Sir Donald Bradman and drinking glasses by Lindsay Hassett, his MBE and OAM. On the walls, a handsome young chap in his black and white prime smiles back, next to an award honoring his membership of the Australian Test team of the 20th century.
He still loves Test cricket but, despite the attacking nature of his own batting, is not fond of Bazball. “I’m disappointed in England, I think the way they’re approaching the batting side is becoming too reckless, no one seems to want to build an innings like a Cowdrey or a Boycott.
“It might work against regular teams, but when you have a class side like Australia it’s a different story. I used to score runs relatively quickly and everyone gets a lot of enjoyment out of it, but when you try to play this Bazball thing it takes away the chance of winning an important Test. I’d like to see them pull their hooves in.”
He likes watching Kane Williamson and Joe Root – “They’ve been the best batsmen for quite some time, I think it’s time someone else takes a bit of responsibility and challenges them for that” – and thinks Mitchell Starc is a wonder. “He has everything: pace, bounce and swinging the ball, he can do everything with it, that’s why he is now one of the greats.”
However, the future of the Test game worries him. “Ashes cricket holds the game together here, there are so many poor cricket teams playing international cricket, I just wish I had played against them. I think these bats they use today are unfair, you don’t have to hit it anymore, all you have to do is bend your wrist and hold your bat there, the ball flies away and goes for four. If you put two even teams against each other, the stronger batting side will win.”
It’s almost 78 years since Harvey brought Bradman’s great side to England. He was 21 years younger than his captain, who described him as having the brilliance and daring of youth.
“I had a great group of guys to go with, we went by ship and we all got to know each other along the way. It was just a learning curve for me that I never forgot. I learned so much about life in general from those guys, they put me on the right track. They made sure I had a really great cricket career, I played the game with great guys and against some great guys like Alec Bedser and Freddie Trueman, Peter May and Colin Cowdrey.
“I have a lot of memories, but let’s say the obvious one was my very first Test match against England. I was 19, I never thought I would get into the side, it was so strong, but through injury I got a match in the Leeds Test and managed to scrape together a century, it was very satisfying.”
Arriving in war-damaged London from Australia was a huge culture shock. “England was very damaged, I can still see St. Paul’s Cathedral, all the buildings around it were razed to the ground – there must be a message there somewhere. I’ve been on four tours and I’ve seen the beautiful city of London virtually rebuilt. I’ve always said it’s the best city I’ve ever been to.”
No cricketing life passes without disappointment, and Harvey was Australia’s captain. “I thought I actually had it, I thought I was next to take over, but the selectors decided Ian Craig was the man for the job, which hurt me a bit, a 21-year-old taking over the captaincy.
‘I only captained Australia once, at Lord’s in ’61 [he won]but it couldn’t have happened in a more beautiful or beautiful place than Lord’s, my favorite in the cricket world. I love what it stands for, I’ve always been a strong follower of history and if you go back to ’48, that’s where I met Jack Hobbs.
Zak Crawley and Jacob Bethell followed Ben Duckett back into the pavilion during our conversation. Shortly afterwards, Harvey switched to horse racing, another passion, along with a glass of Barossa Shiraz. He also knows exactly what’s going on in world affairs, Bruce says. “In other words,” Harvey chuckles, “I’m not quite dead yet.”
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